The Legacy of Fake News

In this new era of instant information, social networks play a fundamental role in citizen interactions as a communication mechanism. However, the excessive amount of content that circulates on these platforms is often not verified and people are exposed to fake news that affects their opinion, especially in political decision-making, therefore, the circulation and consumption of inaccurate communications presents pernicious effects on democratic development and especially in the new electoral process in the face of the constitutional plebiscite.
In particular, fake news is a type of content whose objective is disinformation and generally responds to interest groups that seek to install those lies for their benefit (Gohdes, 2017). In the case of our country, disseminating misleading references and distorted data through those platforms has become a common practice in the face of the plebiscite of exit for a new Constitution.
For months, extensive information has been disseminated and posted regarding the lack of protection with respect to private property, that the proposed new Constitution allows the interruption of pregnancy up to nine months, that thanks to this initiative private education and health in the country will be eliminated, etc. Consequently, the purpose of the message is to connect with the deep citizen feeling, wreaking havoc on public opinion through social networks.
According to the Regional Barometer survey (2019) the media and digital networks most used by Chileans are Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. In this sense, 68.9% of respondents use social networks as a digital tool to learn about national and regional events, therefore, these media have a significant reach in their users regarding the proliferation of fake news as an attack tool, which coincides with the results of the survey conducted by Datavoz and Estudios Digitales, where “58% of respondents said they had known information about the Constitutional Convention that ultimately turned out to be false” (CNN, 2022).
Undoubtedly, the use of internet platforms has changed and revolutionized the form of communication, playing an increasingly important role in increasing the speed and dissemination of information (Zeitzoff, 2017). Mainly, these means provide users with the experience of searching and sharing certain content instantly, adding to this not only ordinary citizens, but also entrepreneurs, state institutions, authorities and former conventionals who have collected this new form of communication. Now, the question is why has information gone viral without verifying the sources? What is the danger this can trigger? It is extremely disturbing that opinion leaders and even authorities of our country disseminate illegitimate or inaccurate information that confuses citizens, affecting the credibility of constitutional work which results in aversion to the content of the text regarding uncertainty towards the future, therefore, it is essential to emphasize media responsibility and is a clear call for attention to the faces of approval and rejection to verify the veracity of the data Issued.
In short, dealing with disinformation and the excess of distorted data represents a complex challenge for citizens who must discern about the real content of the text and what is not established in the proposal for a new Constitution, therefore, it is essential that we all manage to face the legacy of fake news in this new civic process, assuming with responsibility the dissemination of data, looking for mechanisms to verify the information and establishing parameters of prevention against electoral disinformation.
References
Regional Barometer. (2019). Presentation of Results Regional Barometer Survey: Chile seen by its regions.
CNN Chile. (2022). Survey: 58% have received false information about the Constitutional Convention. Constituent Section.
Gohdes, A. (2017). Studying the internet and violent conflict. Conflict management and peace science,35(1),1-18.
Zeitzoff, T. (2017). How Social Media Is Changing Conflict, Journal of Conflict Resolution,1-22.

Original source in Spanish